ONS finds a third of UK firms with 10 or more staff use AI
Official survey data shows business adoption has almost tripled since 2023, but the typical adopter uses fewer than two AI technologies and few have trained most of their staff
- AI use ranges from 58% of businesses in information and communication to 13% in construction
- Only 11% of businesses with 10 or more staff say more than half their workforce has had AI training
- More than half (55%) of employed and self-employed people in Great Britain report using AI for work or education, according to the ONS Opinions and Lifestyle Survey
- Hiring staff with AI skills rises from about 2% of the smallest businesses to 10% of those with 250 or more employees
The gap between staff use and company adoption suggests some employees may be using AI tools independently of any company decision, so an inventory and a usage policy should come before any new purchase. The data favor depth over breadth: pick one process, train the people who run it and measure the result before adding tools. Where free consumer tools are the entry point, check their data terms before anyone pastes in customer or financial information.
“This would imply relatively limited transformative impacts to date for most AI-adopting firms.”Office for National Statistics, UK national statistics agency
Around 35% of UK businesses with 10 or more employees used at least one AI technology in June 2026, up from about 12% in September 2023, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said on 20 July 2026. The figures come from its Business Insights and Conditions Survey (BICS), wave 159, run from 5 to 28 June.
Size still matters. Some 28% of businesses with up to nine employees reported using AI, against 49% of those with 250 or more. Large language models were the most common technology (18% of firms with 10 or more staff), followed by visual content creation (16%). Yet among adopters, the smallest firms were more likely than the largest to describe their use as extensive: 17% of those with up to nine employees, against 9% of the largest.
Two-fifths (41%) of businesses with 10 or more staff reported nothing holding back adoption in the previous three months. Where firms did, a lack of expertise was among the most cited, reaching about 18% of businesses with 100 to 249 employees, while cost affected between 7% and 14% depending on size. Firms short of expertise mostly respond by training existing staff (around 62%) rather than hiring. Manufacturing, retail and hospitality firms most often rely on free-to-use tools, and about half of businesses across size bands say AI has not changed their headcount.
Sources
- Office for National Statistics, “Artificial intelligence in UK businesses: 2023 to 2026”, article, 20 July 2026. https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/businessservices/articles/artificialintelligenceinukbusinesses/2023to2026
- GOV.UK, “AI in UK businesses”, official statistics announcement, 20 July 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/ai-in-uk-businesses
